Khaberni - Argentinian Javier Mascherano, coach of the American team Inter Miami, acknowledged that he knew beforehand about his fellow countryman Lionel Messi renewing his contract with the team for some time before the club officially announced it.
Last Thursday, Inter Miami announced that they had reached an agreement with the Argentine star to keep him with the team for the next three years, until December 2028.
Mascherano confirmed in a press conference held after Inter Miami's victory over Nashville in the first match of the playoffs within the American league, that the club was confident of Messi's stay with the team.
He said, "We have known this for a long time," despite the media buzz surrounding Messi's future, whose current contract with the team ends in about two months.
Mascherano mentioned that announcing the contract renewal before the start of the playoffs in the American league was logical, in order to ensure stability in the team.
In his first match after announcing his contract renewal, Messi led Inter Miami to a 3-1 victory over Nashville, scoring two goals himself.
Messi opened the scoring in the 19th minute with a header after a pass from his former Barcelona teammate Luis Suarez, before securing his team's victory with the third goal (3-1) in stoppage time after the opposing team's goalkeeper Joe Willis failed to control a ball from Jordi Alba from the left side, allowing "the flea" to deposit it into the net.
Despite the victory, Mascherano pointed out that there is a great margin for improvement, asserting that winning the title at the end of this season "requires the participation of all players."
The second match in the first round series of the American league playoffs between the two teams is scheduled to take place on the first of November at the Nashville stadium, where Inter Miami triumphed a week ago with a 5-2 score, a match that saw Messi scoring 3 goals (hat-trick).
